Currently, a known issue for driving bolts or securing nuts is access to a periphery of the nut or the head of the bolt. As a mere example, the engine compartment of a passenger automobile and each of the components therein are designed and laid-out to maximize the use of the space within the engine compartment. The result of such engineering is that access to workpieces securing the various components either to the car or to the other components is limited. Accordingly, it has long been known to use an extension to reach the workpieces.
A common extension is generally elongated and rod-like. During use, a distal end of the extension is mated with an apparatus known as a socket driver, while a proximal end of the extension is mated with a ratchet wrench. Generally speaking, the socket driver may be mated with the ratchet wrench, yet such an arrangement would render the socket driver unable to reach the desired workpiece. Hence, the extension distal end has structure like that of the ratchet wrench so that the distal end may mate with the socket driver in order to reach the workpiece. Likewise, the proximal end includes structure like that of the socket driver so that the proximal end is mateable with the ratchet wrench for providing torque to the workpiece.
As a ratchet wrench, rotation thereof in a first direction operatively is capable of providing drive torque, while counter-rotation in a second direction opposite the first merely allows the ratchet mechanism to ratchet over a component, commonly a spring-biased pawl or pawls. In many forms, it is known for the ratchet wrench to be selectively engageable to select a drive direction and a ratchet direction. Typically this is achieved by providing a lever or similar mechanism on the ratchet wrench, reversal of the lever serving to reverse the drive and ratchet directions by adjusting a position of the pawl or pawls.
The above-described extension, used with or without the ratchet wrench, nonetheless has drawbacks. For initial driving of a workpiece, or for final removal of the workpiece, it is typical for the workpiece to rotate with very little torque applied. As a specific common example, a nut will often spin freely on a threaded bolt shank until the nut comes in contact with something else, at which time increasing amounts of torque are required to tighten the nut on the bolt. The extension may be necessary for driving or removing the workpiece, even when the workpiece is able to move with small amounts of torque, due to the location of the workpiece.
In using the extension with workpieces that require small torque amounts for at least some amount of rotations or turn, the extension is simply rotated by fingers applied directly to the extension. For the ratchet wrench, some amount of resistance must be offered by the workpiece in order for the ratchet wrench to ratchet; the workpiece that is able to rotate with small torque amounts in one desired direction usually will rotate in the opposite direction with similarly small torque amounts. Therefore, the resistance required for the ratchet wrench to ratchet is not present; alternating movements of rotation and counter-rotation by the ratchet wrench simply serve to rotate the workpiece back and forth.
Accordingly, a user typically needs to maintain at least one hand on the extension at all times to maintain contact with the workpiece. The user then also needs to turn and release the extension with their other hand. So, in one form, a user grasps the extension connected with the workpiece with a first hand and then rotates the extension to some degree. Continuing, the user then grasps the extension with the other hand while releasing the first hand, which is repositioned for a subsequent rotation. The second hand is released as the first hand begins the subsequent rotation, and so on and so forth until the workpiece is either removed or reaches the point of requiring a higher torque. In a variation of this, a user may attempt to use the ratchet wrench with the extension by using one hand to rotate and counter-rotate the ratchet wrench while the other hand applies sufficient frictional resistance to the extension so that the rotation of the ratchet wrench in the drive direction is permitted with drive torque transmitted through the extension to the workpiece, while counter-rotation of the extension along with the ratchet wrench is resisted or prevented by the user's hand, thus providing the torque sufficient for the ratchet wrench to successfully ratchet.
Accordingly, there has been a need for an improved extension and, a need for ratchet wrenches for low resistance-torque applications.